Swiss to Vote on Mosque Minarets Ban
THE GUARDIAN: Minarets on mosques are 'symbol of political power' claims rightwing campaign denounced by opponents as racist

A minaret on the roof of a Turkish cultural centre in Wangen bei Olten, north-western Switzerland. Photograph: The Guardian
The Swiss are to decide this weekend whether to ban minarets on mosques, in what is in effect the first direct vote in a European country on Islam and the practices of Muslims.

The controversial referendum on Sunday, accompanied by a prohibition campaign denounced as racist and in violation of human rights, is the latest tussle in Europe over the limits of multiculturalism and immigrant lifestyles.

Pushed by anti-immigrant rightwing populists, it has triggered months of debate in a country that uses direct democracy for single-issue politics. The referendum has turned into much more than a vote on architecture and urban planning.

"The minaret has got nothing to do with religion. It's a symbol of political power, a prelude to the introduction of sharia law," argued Ulrich Schlüer, of the rightwing Swiss People's party, an architect of the campaign.

Two years ago the SPP became the strongest party in Switzerland, with an anti-immigrant election campaign that featured posters of three white sheep kicking a black sheep off a red and white Swiss flag. UN experts and human rights activists condemned the campaign as overtly racist.

This time the SPP has plastered the country with posters showing the same flag as a base for several black minarets, portrayed as missiles, alongside a woman clad in a black burqa. Church leaders, the Jewish community and Muslim leaders have all opposed the campaign. The foreign minister, Micheline Calmy-Rey, warned that a vote in favour risked turning Switzerland into "a target for Islamic terrorism". The city of Basel and other towns have proscribed the incendiary posters.

Amnesty International said: "Freedom of religious belief is a basic human right and changing the Swiss constitution to ban the construction of minarets would clearly breach the rights of the country's Muslims."

UN human rights experts have said the proposed ban violates freedom of religion and liberty. The Swiss justice minister, Eveline Widmer-Schlumpf, has agreed, declaring that it would breach anti-discrimination laws and rights to free religious observance, raising the question of why the campaign has been allowed. >>> Ian Traynor, Europe editor | Thursday, November 26, 2009

The West Goes to Hell in a Handbasket! And Switzerland Leads the Way!
Photo courtesy of the Mail Online
MAIL Online: A pioneering Swiss programme aimed to curb drug abuse by providing addicts with a clean, safe place to take heroin is expected to be made permanent by voters in a referendum on Sunday.

The programme has been criticized by the United States and the U.N. narcotics board, which said it would fuel drug abuse.

But governments as far away as Australia are beginning or considering their own systems modeled on the Swiss one, which is credited with reducing crime and improving the health and daily lives of addicts.

It has won wide support within Switzerland since it began 14 years ago to eliminate scenes of large groups of drug users shooting up openly in parks that marred Swiss cities in the 1980s and 1990s.

Dr. Daniele Zullino's office, part of the Geneva University Hospitals, is one of 23 such centres in Switzerland. Switzerland Set to Approve Prescription Heroin as 'Safe Alternative' for Addicts >>> | November 29. 2008

TIMESONLINE: Swiss Voters Back £14m-a-year Health Scheme to Give Addicts Free Heroin

The free provision of heroin to addicts won the overwhelming support of Swiss voters yesterday.

Projections based on early results indicated that 69 per cent of voters approved the programme, believed to be the first of its kind in the world, in a poll called under the country's system of direct democracy.

Crime by heroin addicts has fallen 60 per cent since the initiative to allow health clinics to administer controlled doses of the drug began 14 years ago, according to the Swiss Federal Office of Public Health.

The support for the plan came in a referendum called by opponents of a government policy that treats hardened drug users as patients rather than criminals. Critics, including conservatives who called for the referendum, object to the annual cost of 26 million Swiss francs (£14 million), covered by the health insurance that all citizens pay and the Government covers for those who cannot afford it.

While the Swiss have a more tolerant attitute towards drugs than most European countries, a parallel referendum to legalise small-scale cannabis growing and use was soundly rejected by a margin of about two to one.

The heroin scheme was introduced in response to a public outcry over the sight of addicts openly injecting the drug in public parks, as well as a rise in HIV and hepatitis infection. About 1,300 addicts are currently on the programme of carefully supervised doses, measured to satisfy their cravings yet avoid the risks of overdose and catching infections from dirty needles.

The addicts attend one of the country's 23 heroin centres and, in groups of four, inject themselves under the watchful eye of a nurse. They leave after a few minutes — those with jobs going back to work. >>> David Charter, Europe Correspondent | December 1, 2008

BBC: Swiss Approve Prescription Heroin

Swiss voters have approved a change in health policy to offer prescription heroin to addicts on a permanent basis.

Final results from the national referendum showed 68% of voters supported the plan.

The scheme, allowing addicts to inject the drug under medical supervision at a clinic, began in Zurich 14 years ago before spreading across the country.

But in another referendum vote, 63% of voters rejected the decriminalisation of cannabis.

The heroin vote was one of a series of referendums held to decide policy on illegal drugs.

Under the scheme, addicts visit clinics up to twice a day, where they inject the drug under medical supervision. They can also be treated for other medical issues or mental health problems, out correspondent says.

The policy is described as one of last resort - prescribing addicts with the very drug that caused their problems in the first place - but supporters say it works, and Swiss voters appear to have agreed, the BBC's Imogen Foulkes in Berne says.

Switzerland will be the first country to include it in government policy. >>> | November 30, 2008

Watch BBC video: Inside a Swiss heroin clinic >>>
TAGES ANZEIGER: BBC berichtet über Heroinabgabe

Das Ja der Schweizer Stimmbürger zur Revision des Betäubungsmittelgesetzes ist weltweit Thema.

So hat etwa das News-Portal des lokalen News-Senders Central Florida News eine entsprechende Meldung der Nachrichtenagentur Associated Press (AP) aufgeschaltet. Auch die BBC berichtet über das klare Votum für die gesetzlich legitimierte Weiterführung der Heroinabgabe («Prescription Heroin»). Die Schweizer Drogenpolitik habe zum Verschwinden der offenen Drogenszenen und zu einer Reduktion der Beschaffungskriminalität geführt. Dies habe das Stimmvolk nun anerkannt und sei somit den Argumenten der Befürworter gefolgt.

Einer der Befürworter ist Ueli Spörri, Geschäftsleiter der Zürcher Heroinabgabestelle Arud. «Der Entscheid ist hoffentlich wegweisend auch für andere Länder. Dass unsere Drogenpolitik funktioniert, zeigt das klare Abstimmungsresultat. Wir sind selber ein bisschen überrascht, dass kein einziger Kanton Nein gestimmt hat», sagt Spörri. Mit dem positiven Entscheid können 23 Heroinabgabestellen ihre Arbeit weiterführen. [Quelle: Tages Anzeiger] 1. Dezember 2008

The Dawning of a New Dark Age (Taschenbuch und Gebundene Ausgabe) – Versandkostenfrei innerhalb der Schweiz >>>